1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods of operating a keyboard, video and mouse (KVM) switch.
2. Background of the Related Art
In a datacenter or other facility, there may be many compute nodes in a small amount of space. While a system administrator may need occasional direct access to each of the compute nodes, there isn't enough space for each compute node to have a dedicated keyboard, video display, or mouse. Furthermore, such a large scale duplication of these input/output devices would greatly increase the cost of the system.
As a result, keyboard, video and mouse (KVM) switches were developed so that a single keyboard, video display device and mouse could be selectively connected to operate any of the compute nodes that were connected to the KVM switch. While the original KVM switches were mechanical, modern KVM switches are controlled by a processor running a KVM switch interface program. These “console switches” may be configured to access over 2000 compute nodes from a single keyboard, video display, and mouse.